Working together is more productive. It was this realisation that led eight Portuguese rail companies to join forces in July last year to form ‘Plataforma Ferroviária Portuguesa’, known by its initials PFP. More than 30 other companies as well as various institutions engaged in research and training have since joined the newly created association as associate members. The aim is to take advantage of the synergies that have been created in order to improve the innovativeness of the railway sector in Portugal and to enhance the competiveness of its products on the world market.
With its plans for a pavilion at InnoTrans 2016 (20 to 23 September) PFP will be even better placed to meet these global objectives. Sixty per cent of the exhibitors and more than half of all the trade visitors who attended the world’s leading trade fair for transport technology in 2014 came from abroad.
“For us InnoTrans is THE industry event. Participation is the best and most effective way for the Portuguese rail industry to present its products and services to the international market”, according to Magno Santos, business development manager for Evoleo Technologies, a manufacturer of hardware and a founding member of PFP.
Santos also draws attention to another factor: the high concentration of decision-makers from all over the world who gather here in such numbers for four days. “Our members will be making full use of InnoTrans in order to strengthen existing business links and to establish new commercial contacts”, says Santos.
Portugal’s past record at InnoTrans has included many successes. Since it first participated in 1998 the country’s display area and exhibitors have increased more than ten-fold. New names among the Portuguese exhibitors this year include Monte Meão, a manufacturer of seats and seating systems, and Couro Azul SA, which produces leather goods. Both of these companies will be presenting their product ranges in the Interiors segment.
